Canada - September 2014

Second trip to Canada this year but first to manitoulin where Gaynor has lived for the last 35 years.
Monday 13th
Arrived Toronto , met by Gaynor and Hanna. Stayed in Holiday Inn nearby after taking Hanna to station.
Tuesday Niagara.
Drove to hotel who did not have my booking but who found us a room. Walked to the falls. Spectacular. Did quite a bit of walking around to get our bearings and to help us to decide what to do tomorrow.
Wednesday
Niagara experience day pass. Well worth the money. Went on the Hornblower first to the base of the falls. What a thunderous experience. The pass included an all day hop on hop off on the Wego bus so the next visit was to the white water walk. Not sure what to expect but the rapids were well worth a visit. On to the flower clock where we decided that we wouldn' even get off the bus. However on the return journey we stopped at the Whirlpool. Again - amazing. Should have taken the opportunity to cross over the river on the cable car but chose to go onto the glassblowing place where we watched a glass maple leaf being produced from start to finish. Next the 4D experience. History of the geology of the area and how the falls had formed and another soaking. Finally the walk behind the falls and our 3rd poncho of the day. Damp musty tunnel took us to where we could look out at the water falling like a curtain past a window. Then out on to the platform where we could see behind the edge of the Canadian falls. Once again a spectacular sight and a deafening sound.
Thursday
Moving on to get at least half way to Manitoulin. Discovered that I had mixed up the dates of my hotel booking and luckily the receptionist noticed it otherwise I would have been paying for Thursday and Friday as well. Stopped at a place called St Jacob and went to a Menonite produce market. This was where we were originally going to be staying but we decided to move on further to reduce travel time on Friday. Found a motel which was very like one in Tailem Bend in Australia. However local Chinese takeaway was good value.
Friday
Zigzagged up the peninsular to Tobermory where we were getting the ferry over to the island. Made good time and had time to look around the settlement before boarding. Ferry trip was just short of 2 hours and was very smooth. Apparently it had been quite rough the previous day. Once we reached the island there was still an hours drive to get to gaynor's farm. A beer was very welcome by the time we got there. Floyd was waiting with one ready almost.
Gaynor's house is full of character with extentions built on at various levels. 
Saturday
Woke up to a change in the weather -raining and considerably colder. After a lazy morning, was taken on a trip around Gore Bay where the local museum has an art exhibition by a local artist - Christie bell Pearson. Very good . Bought a print. Gaynor's niece was doing a Saturday job at the museum. Supper was at a place called Silver Water - a charity fish supper. Gaynor and Floyd seem to very well known in the area. Floyd then drove to his 'man shack' - alias his hunting shack where he and his mates spend a weekend hunting, drinking and playing cards. 
Sunday
Relaxed morning. Made picnic lunch and went to see Bridal Falls. Not quite on the scale of Niagara but very pretty. The salmon had reached the pond below the falls on the last stretches of their life cycle. We followed the river down stream to KagAwong where it flowed into the lake. Many fish were struggling to swim up stream - some following a route that would only take them to a small mill /hydro plant. KagAwong is a small community on the edge of the north side of the lake. Yet another art gallery with some beautiful pictures again painted by a local artist.  After our picnic we drove to Providence bay and walked along the board walk. Everywhere we go we meet someone that Gaynor knows. The art gallery, the local store at the falls where we were served by a past pupil, the cafe in Providence bay.
Monday
Did some gardening for Gaynor in the morning. Went to Misery Bay in the afternoon. Gaynor is the Vice President of the Misery Bay park group which keeps the park centre open in the the summer months. She took me around the park pointing out geological changes, plant life, animal trails etc. the we followed the trails to the lake side, around the bay for quite a distance and then through the woods. Seemed to be walking for hours. The centre itself had animal skins, animal skeletons, fossils and activities for kids. 

Calgary

Calgary is a flat city. Although there are several high rise buildings, there are no hills. The bus from Banff to Calgary followed the Bow river valley through the foothills of the Rockies. We arrived at the hotel hot and sticky to learn that Germany had won the World Cup. Lothan must have been pleased.
Sunday was the last night of the Stampede and we ummed and ahhed about going just for the experience but in the end we decided that we could survive without it. We had seen quite a bit on TV and it would have been quite a long walk to get there and we hadn't worked out their transport system at that time. We settled for a few beers instead.
Monday
Having worked out the transport system on the c train, we went to Calgary's Heritage Museum. It was similar to St Fagans near Cardiff. Replica buildings had been made into a small pioneer town with a train taking you around if you wanted. There was also a native Indian camp on the site. Every building was 'manned' by someone who acted out the part of whoever had lived in it during the pioneer time. It seemed very authentic. We also went for a 'cruise' on the lake in an ols paddle steam ship. The bakers also sold some lovely pies. It took a good 4 hours to do the whole museum and we were very hot and dry by the time we caught the train back to the hotel.
Tuesday
Had arranged to meet Monica, my cousin, and her partner Michael for lunch in the CN Tower. Had time to walk around around the city and get a coffee first. The CN tower used to be the tallest building in Calgary but it is now surrounded by much taller office blocks and hotels. The restaurant at the top revolved around slowly so we could see all the sights of Calgary and surrounding district. On a clear day it is possible to see the Rockies but apparently there were some forest fires creating smoke in the distance so we didn't get to see that view.
It was good to meet Michael and to catch up with Monica other than at a family funeral After leaving them to travel back to their small holding somewhere out in the sticks, we went to Calgary museum expecting to spend our usual amount of time in a museum - an hour or so. However the museum was on 3 floors and before we knew it we were being asked to leave as they were closing at 5. We had been there nearly 3 hours and had only done the art gallery and half of the 1st Nations gallery. We had a few hours to spare on Wednesday morning before flying back to Vancouver so asked if we could return the next day. They very kindly agreed to allow us back in for nothing. Bargain. Though not as good as the bargain getting into the Heritage museum where we got 2 for 1 with a voucher and we got in as seniors. We chose not to look insulted at being considered over 65!
Wednesday
Finished the museum, caught bus to airport which looked quite close from the CN tower but in actual fact took us 45 minutes. Our flight to Vancouver went via Edmonton - this had been my mistake when booking as I hadn't read that the flight was not direct. It was a bit of a palaver but all went quite smoothly. The hotel in Vancouver was a short train ride and a short walk from the airport.

Banff

Despite the size of the bedroom, we have really enjoyed Heidi's B&B. it has a fair size living room and a breakfast area but the bonus has been that we have had somewhere to sit outside at the end of the day to drink gin and tonic. The weather has been glorious. Lothan, our 'landlord' has taken us out in his old merc to search for wildlife. Saw some elks but no bears. Just like the kangaroos in Australia, they seem to be hiding from us. Took a trip to Lake Louise and Moraine lake on Thursday pm. Absolutely stunning colours of the water. Unfortunately the tour guide was not that confident so his explanation of places went over our heads as we switched off from his voice. Friday morning, tour around tunnel mountain and to Minnewanka lake with a different guide. What a difference. Saw some really big male elks in someone's garden. Thought it was a wooden replica at first but then it moved. Wow. Walked to Cave and Basin hot springs in pm - not to bathe. These were the springs that first brought visitors to Banff. Very interesting. Saturday took the Gondola up Sulpher Mountain. Unbelievable views. We have been busy nearly every day but still keep to a sort of timetable of being somewhere for a beer at 5, then back to B&B for a shower and a g&t, then out to eat. Ieuan starts planning the evening meal over coffee in the morning - not that he is guided by his stomach of course!!! So far we have not had a bad meal. Whilst eating breakfast on Sunday we saw a large male elk just walking down the street where we were staying. Almost as if it was planned for me to see before we left Banff. Did some souvenir shopping and then Lothan took us to the station to catch the Greyhound bus to Calgary. Ieuan a bit fed up as this coincided with the World Cup final. Calgary here we come. Last lap of our trip

Rocky Mountaineer

Organisation of Rocky Mountaineer is very efficient. The train wasn't full so I was able to spread my self out over both sides of the carriage and Ieuan had a seat to himself as well. How lucky was that. Although we were travelling 3 rd class we were very well looked after. The food on the 1st day was cold buffet but was all very tasty. We had endless non alcoholic drinks and snacks. Our crew man was very good at telling us the history or geology of the places were passing and he had radio links with the driver who passed on information when wild life was spotted up ahead. We were able to get cameras ready but as we were about 15 carriages back, sometimes the wildlife had disappeared before we reached it. Got one photo of a bear coming out of the water though. May need to blow it up a bit! The 1st part of the journey just getting out of Vancouver took nearly 2 hours. The passenger train always has to wait for freight trains to go first and as the track is single line apart from passing places, we got held up on a number of occasions. Our maximum speed seemed to be about 35mph as well. There was also a number of spectacular viewing sights where the train slowed to almost nothing as each carriage had the opportunity to take photos. Unfortunately the route that the train track took was also the route for the electricity posts and lines so most shots have got lines through them. There was also the trees. Ok if the camera worked in time to get the photo between trees. Several photos have had to be deleted due to fuzzy trees in the foreground. Due to several delays when freight trains had to pass - some as long as 150 carriages - we arrived in Kamloops nearly 2 hours late. By this time we had met some Australian girls and another Aus lady travelling on her own so we had a meal in the hotel with them. 6.30 start again on day 2.a tired bleary-eyed group of people met once again on board the bus to take us to the train. The hotel that we 3rd class people were in was by the river on the outskirts of the town but it had the best view of all the places we have stayed in so far. Chan, our carriage host met us with a cheery smile as we boarded to start day 2. We had a number of different nationalities on board. There were 4 Indian men in front of us who were all business partners on a travelling trip. Unfortunately they did not have headphones for their music which droned on for long parts of the journey added to which they often decoded to sing-along as well. Further back there was a number of Australians. One couple with their 14 year old son were from Perth. The son must have been bored to tears. There was a few Germans, someone from Scotland and even a few Canadians. Conversations were limited to who you happened to be standing next to on the outdoor viewing platforms. Day 1 had been about rivers, trees and lakes. Day was only slightly different in that there was now more mountains and a few waterfalls. We were promised some more wildlife and a few bears were spotted - one in the distance coming out of the river. Managed to get a photo of him. We were told that there would likely be more wildlife once we reached the Banff National Park but we had so many delays with line repairs, red lights to allow freight through and a stop for a part to be replaced on one of the engines, that it was running 4 hours late and therefore dark by the time we did the last part of our journey. We were lucky as we're staying in Banff? Those going on to Calgary had to get off in Banff and then travel by coach to Calgary. They would not have reached their hotels before the early hours of the morning. We at least got to Heidi's B&B by 11- tired and wobbly after being on a train for 2 days. This trip had been recommended by so many people but I think our experience was marred by the number of unfortunate delays. Heidi's B&B is OK! We have got a tiny kitchen, tiny shower room and not much bigger bedroom - it takes the bed which is walled in at top and left hand side and half of the bottom. The other side has room for a small bedside cabinet .

Vancouver 2

Week 3 Back in Vancouver for weekend. Weather has turned grey again although we had a calm crossing from Nanaimo to Horseshoe Bay. It was a bit of palava getting on the express bus as nearly every foot passenger had the same idea. It made for a cosy journey. We are now back on foot but managed the HoHo bus. It took us through Stanley Park and then on to a stop near Granville Island. We decided to get off there as we had had enough of the driver droning on. Granville Island was quite interesting from the point of view that it had some very up- market stalls and shops. The market sold all sorts of fruit and veg and there was also quite a few cheese stalls. The island had been an industrial one and there was still a cement factory near the sea front. The market shops and stalls reflected the the art, culture, food, and 1st Nations history of the area. After an enjoyable couple of hours avoiding the rain, we returned to the bus stop to find that our previous driver must have completed a whole circuit because he picked us up. We lasted to the Urban Winery where we felt it was necessary for another welcome stop for beer and wine tasting. Later had a meal in Yaletown followed by what was supposed to be 'one last drink' in the bar next door to hotel! Very friendly bar staff. Turned out to be great end to the evening especially after a couple of very quiet nights in Nanaimo. Sunday was very wet. We couldn't face another Ramada breakfast so went to diner across the road. We made a decision, whilst standing in the rain at Canada Place, to take the shuttle bus to the north of vancouver to go on the suspension bridge at Capilano. Best decision we have made so far this holiday. A great place to visit with walkways up in the rainforest, a long wobbly suspension bridge and a cliff walk. By the time we had finished the sun had come out which was an added bonus and we got to keep the 'stylish' yellow ponchos that were given out free. The downside of the visit was that when we went to catch the shuttle bus back, Graham, our droning driver, had switched from HoHo to shuttle. Lovely long walk in the sun in Stanley Park in afternoon. Had an early night in order to be up early on Monday to get the Rocky mountaineer train

Victoria

It is so easy to find places in towns with the 'grid' system. Journey from Tofino was long with intermittent rain and sunshine. Stopped for a break in a place called Coombs. It is a town/village that had a few shops and entertainment for children but the main attraction was goats grazing on the roof of the cafe/bar. We found the hotel with ease and it offered parking around the corner which was a bonus. A further bonus was the fact that it had a bar and restaurant attached and our room overlooked a rooftop volleyball court. The down side was that it also overlooked a rooftop bar which had a party going on on our 1st night. We were close to the main downtown harbour which was buzzing every evening with street markets and entertainers, water taxis and sea planes coming and going all the time. Also lots of restaurants. Our full day started with the open top bus tour of the city and surrounding area with commentary from a local geriatric. Victoria is apparently the place for Canadians to retire which became obvious from the number do disability scooters and walking frames. Mind you not all these were for the elderly, some were for the obese! Victoria was preparing for great celebrations for Canada day which we were going to miss as we were moving on. It was a lovely city with lots of lovely friendly people. Our last morning was spent in the Butchart gardens- gardens that had been created out of an old limestone quarry. Well worth a visit. Driving north to Nanaimo we were actually experiencing our second day of sun and warmth at last. We stopped off in a place called Ladysmith, to visit their farmers market and to watch their village celebrations for Canada day. Everyone was out in the park on the sea front. The CD queen had been picked and the town mayor was making a speech followed by the local First Nation leader. We then stood for the national anthem! Our hotel - the Ramada - in Nanaimo is comfortable with a large bedroom, a fridge - cold gin and tonic at last - and a microwave. We are however a a 10 minute walk from the downtown area. There is however a lovely walk on the seafront

Day 7 Last day on board. Everything still grey. Day was broken when we did a 5k walk around the deck in aid of cancer research. W are still unsure about cruising - not ruled it out completely. Have met some really nice people and some have told us not to base all cruises on this one as most ships have a lot more to offer than the Zaandam. Day 8 Tofino Docked by 7am. The system for disembarking is very organised and we were off the ship and at the bus stop for the next part of our journey by 9.15. The bus to Horseshoe Bay was very crowded with many others heading for the ferry to Vancouver Island. The weather once again was wet. We were picked up at the port by the car hire company which was just as well as it didn't look very far on the map and I had considered walking the route at one time, but it was actually about a mile on very busy roads. Phew! The drive across the island was straightforward enough as there is only 1 road. The first part of the journey was on reasonably straight roads but the latter part - about 45 miles was very twisty. Whole journey took about 4 hours. It was like driving to the end of the world. It almost was - Tofino must be the most westerly place in Canada The Maquinna Hotel was basic! In fact it was more like a hostel with a communal room with a microwave, kettle and a fridge. However the room was clean and the bed was comfy. Pity the weather was lousy. Tofino overlooks a huge bay and in some ways it is very similar to Poole Harbour. The hills opposite the town kept appearing and disappearing as the weather changed. When it rained it came down heavily but was over quite quickly. The locals however were relieved to see rain as they had been about to start water restrictions due to their spring drought. We found a nice restaurant overlooking the bay where we were able to watch the tide surging in and also saw eagles swooping down for fish. Quite spectacular. After we had eaten, we realised that everywhere in Tofino closes at 9 so an early night was unavoidable. Day 10 Guess what. It was raining. We found a coffee place for some breakfast without getting too wet. It took about half an hour to see the whole town but we then went for a long walk across the headland to a beach facing the Pacific. Unfortunately our walk was cut short as the heavens opened and we got soaked. We returned to the Macquinna to change and dry out a bit. Managed a bit more exploring in the afternoon when weather cleared up a bit. There were some lovely craft shops in the town but nothing we could find room for to bring back. Day 11 Victoria We woke to see some sunshine at last. Shame we were leaving to travel back across the island. The journey back and to

Alaska

Day 2 Vancouver Woke at the crack of dawn. Obviously still on UK time. Spent the morning doing a recci walk for all the places we have to get too after the cruise. We also wanted to find a bottle of gin to take on board. We were directed by a very nice shop assistant to the BC Liquor store in the Yuppy area of Vancouver. In doing this we found an area full of restaurants and arty shops so have made a note to return there later in the holiday. Having at last found the gin, we has a problem then finding tonic. More street walking. The up-side of this is that we are now quite familiar with the Downtown area. Boarding the ship was quite easy and we were greeted with a lunch and entertainment. Not a bad start except alcohol is quite expensive! After the life-boat drill, we returned to the cabin to unpack. It was only then that we read that we shouldn't have brought the gin on board. Oh well - we got away with it so the obvious thing to do was then to drink it. We were a bit disappointed to find out that Wifi is not free so catching up on the rugby is not an option for Ieuan on Saturday. There is also no Sky sports on board. We are on level 3 and most of the food and activities are on level 8. We have decided to keep using the stairs in order to keep the weight down The first night was casual with a BBQ on the Lido deck. We were joined by what would appear to be real live cowboy. Wore his Stetson throughout the meal and grunted occasionally to something said. His partner did her best but it soon became clear that they were not going to become our new best friends - and vice-versa probably. They were from New Mexico. It is amazing how many kids are on this ship. Is England the only country that still has schools open in June! We managed to stay awake long enough to see the evening entertainment which was given by all the on board entertainers - advertising their itineraries for the week. It struck us that this is a bit like Butlins on sea! An early night was much needed after that. Day 3 Another early start. Having read for an hour or more, I went for a deck walk- 4 times round the deck is 1mile - whilst Ieuan went to the gym. It was still only 7am. Not bad for us. A very grey day and there is quite a swell in the water. Still, when you are used to walking around after a few drinks, this movement is nothing! We just moved from area to area, having a coffee here, reading there, talking to anyone who would listen anywhere, until lunchtime. Went to a talk on how to make the best of Alaska at each of the stops - nothing is cheap though. We are waiting to see what we can do when we get there. It may all depend on the weather. It's surprising how quickly the day passes where you just amble around. At lunch we met a couple from New Zealand who were spending their children's inheritance travelling across Canada and back through the US. They were from Christchurch and had been affected by the earthquake 5 years ago. Richard decided to join Ieuan in the beer tasting later in the afternoon. I went to a talk on the effects of fire and ice on the creation of Alaska. Not everybody's choice of activity but I enjoyed it. Ieuan enjoyed the beer tasting even more. The evening was spent going from one form of activity to another and chasing the happy hour around the boat. Day 4 Another grey day but at least some land in sight today. Yesterday was sea all day. It is like the world has lost all it's colour. It is raining and the land keeps disappearing behind cloud. In some places the mountains are above the cloud. Have been told there are whales around and several people saw some -but not me! Later hopefully. It is very bleak at the moment but you never know it might clear by the time we dock in Juneau. Juneau The Capital City! Only way in is by boat or small plane. Very wet. The 'catch the tourist' groups were waiting on the quayside like vultures but we managed to dodge them and found our own way to the tram/ cable car. The weather was just clear enough to see to the top so we took the risk. The views were great but it was too wet to do any walks. We enjoyed the scenery and the film on the wildlife of Alaska and went back down into the town. What did we see? Jewellery shop after jewellery shop, a few cafés and a few outdoor clothing shops and that was it. In one family run souvenir shop it was explained to us how much mining goes on in Alaska and that jade is one of the largest mining industries. That sort of explains the number of shops. We found one bar with the most unfriendly barmaid - almost made us feel guilty for sitting there in her almost empty bar. She was not the hostess with the mostest which of course would explain a lot! We felt we were about to leave Juneau with a bad impression of the place when we passed The Red Dog Saloon. What a difference. We were welcomed at the door, directed to seats at the bar, served with a smile and a lot of banter and all this whilst there was live music on in the corner. Needless to say we spent more money there than we did in The Triangle Bar. After a very pleasant hour and a couple of beers, we returned to the ship having had our view of Juneau and its people completely turned around. Day 5 Skagway This time we were docked by 7am so there was quite a long day ahead. Again it was quite grey but not raining and there was the occasional patch of blue sky. We found the information centre, booked a train trip into the Klondike and walked most of the town within an hour. Once again, the place was full of jewellery shops. We killed time waiting for the train by having coffee in a small local family run bakery where it was explained to us that all the jewel shops disappear in the winter and move on to the Caribbean Islands. The shops survive in the summer because as many as 10 000 people will land there everyday. There were 4 cruise ships in at the same time as us. The whole tourist industry seemed to be very well run. We went for our train at 12.15 and although approximately 7000 tourists were visiting, we had an almost empty carriage- the tours organised by the cruise ships left from a different station. This meant there was room to stand at the back of the carriage on the journey that the first gold prospectors would have taken. The train chugged on for nearly 2 hours to Frazer, with some spectacular views especially once we were above the tree line. We went over some very rickety bridges which shook a little! The whole rail line is an amazing achievement for those who built it under very hard conditions. At Frazer, we changed over to a coach for our return journey to Skagway. This time the journey only took 30 minutes. We had been told that a visit to The Red Onion Hotel was not to be missed. The Red Onion had been a brothel in the early days of settlers. The bar was an interesting experience but not as good as the one in Juneau. Day 6 Tracy Arm Very grey and wet start to the day as the ship entered this long fjord at 7am. The scenery we could see was extraordinary, the sea was very calm within this sheltered strip. Along with a few hardy mariners, I stood out on the deck listening to the running commentary on how the fjord had formed and about the other features we could see. It also seemed as if we were on ice-berg watch as a few small ones drifted past us. Apart from the constant hum of the ship, the silence was quite eerie ( when the commentary stopped). It was cold and wet and I had difficulty taking photos, looking through the binoculars ( to do this I had to remove my glasses) and also snapping some photos on the iPad whilst wearing gloves. Needless to say, Ieuan was not with me - he was in the warm watching from the front of the boat in the Crow's Nest There was so many waterfalls, even plant life growing on the steep sides. It is incredible what nature can do. It took nearly 5 hours to get through this incredible feet of nature and the ice-bergs were getting bigger. On the 'up side', it stopped raining and the sun began to peak out from behind the clouds lifting the mist off the tops of the mountains in the distance. The views were getting better and better and then we turned the last corner and were faced with the wall of the glacier. Well, not quite as we could not get too close as there was a shelf of packed ice between us but what we could see was amazing especially as the whole picture was reflected in the very still water. The captain spun the ship around slowly so that everyone had a good view of this fabulous feature. The colour was stunning with almost aquamarine blue reflecting out of it. We were also able to see seals sitting on on the icebergs described as 'sausages on mashed potato' until we got closer to some of them. The sun stayed out for the entire time we were there showing that Alaska does have other colours apart from the 50 shades of grey we had been experiencing to date. The return journey down Tracy Arm was a bit quicker and the weather changed again to wet, cold and grey. How lucky we had been to a) get as close as we did to the glacier which we were told was the first time this season and b) to have had an hour of sunshine to view the valley and glacier from all angles. We left the calm water about 3 pm. The ship seemed to speed up a bit through the now choppier waters of the Inside Passage. We sat in the Crow's Nest - which has 270 degree panoramic views and was like being on the Starship Enterprise - whale watching. There were several in the channel but no spectacular performances by the whales - just a few spouts of water and backs looming over with the final flick of a tail that meant it had disappeared for a quite a while. We were told there were some orcas off to the left - they said port side - and I managed to get a bit of a fin in my picture.

Arrival

Day 1. After a very early start, a very long wait in the a airport due to a delay with the flight, and a very long flight we arrived in Vancouver. The train journey from the airport into Downtown Vancouver was easy to negotiate and the hotel was only a short walk from the station. The reception was very helpful but could not seem to get it into his head that all we wanted was a drink- for is it was 10pm- he kept trying to get us to do the open top bus tour, or to book the pre-cruise tour of the north shore. Both lovely ideas but we just wanted a drink! We finally found a pub near by and with thirst quenched we began to feel more human and able to get our thoughts together. We found where the cruise starts so will not be floundering tomorrow. A good stretch of the legs around the dock area brought us to another beer and barrel bar. We were desperately trying to keep going until what would be a reasonable time to go to bed Vancouver time even though by this time we had been up for 24 hours. The bar was lively and we got talking to a couple - Steve and Judy - who live on Vancouver Island and who have invited us to visit them when we are over there. We chatted for quite a long time until hunger and tiredness overtook us. We returned to the first bar for food where I was barely able to keep my eyes open, ate and the finally gave in and went to bed - 9 o'clock.

Checking to find blog!

Sun is shining in watford and we are packing to go to Canada next week

Canada here we come!

Ten days to go before we set off for Canada for a month starting in Vancouver. The first week will be spent on a cruise around the Inner Passage to Alaska.